Medieval beauty

Friday 21 September. Today we drive the coastal road to the South. Amazing views over the sea and every now and then some small beautiful town pops up on the rocky coast. The Crnisevo lakes are amazing, several lakes between the mountains and green trees. Very cool. At the delta of the Crna rika river swamps, channels and cultivated areas with mandarins and vineyards. After a few hours drive we show our passports and enter Bosnia and Herzegovina. Drive through Neum and again pass the border to Croatia. An hour further is our goal, Dubrovnik. We park the car, walk through the park down and arrive at the entrance of the old town. Herds of passengers of some cruise ship walk around. Help. We enter the gate and come into a Medieval town. A big high wall encloses the city. Inside old buildings and old style houses. Many churches, all lovely and a few museums. At the Franciscan monastery a nice small garden and old paintings. Meander through the city with thousands of other tourists. After a refreshment in town we climb the wall and walk around under a burning sun. amazing views over and in the city. A visit to the war photo museum learns about the recent history. What a beautiful, but crowded city.

After Dubrovnik today we drive again to the South along the coast. Skip the first ferry and take the second in Drvenik. On the island Hvar a meandering road leads over it. Great views and lots of olive trees. In Stari Grad we park the car and walk into town. It’s totally empty. Lovely narrow streets for us along. A tractor with cart drives through the narrow streets and manages to take a turn. At the harbour we enjoy the view with a drink. Walk along the boulevard and watch the bay from the stony “beach”. Next city is Hvar. On top of the hill a castle is watching over Hvar. Life is around the harbour. At the central square a family is gettering for a wedding at the church. We take a swim at the city beach and cool down for a while. We’re just in time at the ferry and on the ferry we are lucky to see some dolphins. Always nice.